Improvement in valves for steam pumping-engines



N. W'. WHEELER. VALVES FOR'ASTEAM PUEMPNG ENGINES. No.189,290: n 4 Patented Apr13,18,77.

PATENT FFIG.

vNoerneut W., .WHEE'LER, QFNEWYORK, N. Y.' s

I MPRovEMENi-m VALVES o'R ASTEAM Pom PING-ENGINES.

" Specication forming part of Letters Patent No; 189,290, dated 3, 1877; application tiled February 27,1877. j

" To allwhom it 'may concern; I

yBe it known that' I, NORMAN W. WHEELER, ofthe city, county, ,andStjate of New York, have invented a new 'and useful Improvement` in ySteam-Pumps, Which improvement is' fully described inthe following 'specification and,

accompanying drawings, in which- Figure I is a vertical section of the, steamcylinder upon the line'U'V, and of the valvechambers upon the central line. Fig.- II isa-' yplan of the steam-cylinder, with .the steam and exhaust channels indicated' by broke'nl' lines. Fig. III is a transverse-section-,v of the exhaust-,valve chamber, showing, the'eizhausti way.` Fig. IV isatransversesection of the;

same, showing the steamway. Fig. V is a: transverse section` through'jthe lugsconnectq the steam-valves shown 'in section. Y s v My invention is in part an improvement on .ing vthe valve-seat With thediaphragm 5 andi Fig'. VI is an end view'of the'steam-valve, fchamber, with the connecting-bars betweenl ythe valves shown in patents-granted me- March y'3,' 1857, and January 26, 1,858 vand. it.`

passages, as hereinafter set forth.

The object of my invention Vis 'to furnish'v Vdevices by' which to distribute iu and release "consists in adding plugs or pistons to thepuppet-valves: shown in said patents, and in y 'the arrangement of various valves and lsteamsteam from pumping'or other vengines byI means ot' puppet-valves, which operate each other reciprocally, all in the same line, but in separate chambers, for diminishing the losses arising. from the escape ri; t'steam past the to arrest tlievmotio'n'of the piston as it ap- :proaches the end o'fits' stroke, and for' facilitating ythe constr'u'ction'of such en giues.

" In the d rawingsfAlis the steam-cylinder;

exhaust-'valve chambers','coiiitaining thevalve= s seats W Y-and diaphragmX E, the steamvalve chamber,l G', the l steam-valves, w con-1 iiected'together bythe-,bars Egj'H H', the; exhaust-valves, with-the distancepins K goinglthroug'h. the diaphragms X' and makingV lcontact Withfthe steam-valves G; I I., the nal eXhausteh'annels,"leading into the cham- .ber Z, to which the exhaust-pipe is top beatvalves while they ,are assumingnew positions, Ator making 'more promptY live-steam cushions.

tached.' 'Il L are distance lugs or studs, cast in one'with the valve-seats and diaphragm, so that each set may be worked tol shape at once, and inserted inthe corresponding eX- haust-valve chamber. N N are cushion-valves set over the p orts OO` in the cylinder A,`to

allow the passage of live steam from the cylf The' valve-seats anddiaphragm to thelet't Vin Fig. I are not lettered; but as they correspond in construction and' function with the like parts' tothe right, respectively lettered W, X, and Y, the same letters will be'used,

herein to designate each set, lwith'the sign added to indicate those unlettered parts to the left.

The exhaust-valve chambers D D are cast `Withthe' proper steamv and eizhaust channels R I I bored through, and small rabb'ets made in thel ends, which abut against the steam-chamber F. The steam-valve seat W, diaphragm X, and exhaust-valve seat Y, cast as one piece, united to each other `by the 'lugs L L, are turned to fit tightly in the bored pfai't of the eXhaust-valve`chainber,'and are pressed into place, ay smallv collar upon `W 'fitting into the rabbet in the end of D. The

:steam-valve chamber is bored and faced to lit against andV between the ends ot' the cham bers j DD', and the three parts bolted together and to thefcylinder A. I lhave sometimes vmade the exhaust-valve chambers' Withthe'seats and vdiaphra gms cast in); but, forconvenience of lmanui'acture and repair, I' prefer to make w'up' thel three;v chambers, divided r'roin each other by the proper diaphragms andseats, by pressingthe seat-pieces into place, as described. A,

f', vThe valve-seats W and Y are bored and Mfaced as puppet-valve seats, and the dia- 'phragms X` are pierced by holes, to'ttl distance-pinsK upon the exhaust-valves H H',

and are also faced to form seats forA the collars upon the pins K to seat upon as puppetvalves when the. exhaust-valves are home upon their seats. These collar-valves upon the pins K may be dispensed with if the pins t in the holes reasonably tight, and prevent leakage of steam; but to guard against wear I use these collar-valves in lieu of stuffingboxes in the diaphragme X.

` The two puppet steam-valves Gr are made with cylindrical guide-rings, fitting easily in the bored steam-chamber F, and are connected together by bars E, which bars are too short to permit the seating of both valves at lthe same time; and a steam-passage, ff, is cut out of the disk of each, outside of the face. Upon each steam-valve is a preventer-plug, h,

which projects beyond the puppet-face of the' valve, and iits with moderate closeness into the bored port when the valve is seated. The

`throw or lift of the steam-valves should be enough to withdraw the nreventer-plug from the port, and so allow the flow of steampast it.

.[f the distance between faces of these pre- `Venter-plugs h be equal to or greater than that between the seats W and W', the plug'of 'the closing valve will enter its port as soon as orY before the plugof the opening valve is withdrawn from its port, and prevent the loss of steam which would otherwise occur during the time occupied in the shifting of a pair of valves from seat to'seat, except such loss as may arise from leakage past the preventerplugs before the closing valve arrives home upon its'puppet-seat.

rPhe steam-valvesG may be so fitted as to be borne upon the prolonged ends of the distance pins K without support or guidancefrom the steam-chamber F; or the steamchest F may be enlarged and cast in one with two exhaust-valve chambers, DD', andV the valve-seats, diaphragms, and separate guide-pieces for the steam-valves be passed to their places through an opening in the side or top of the intermediate steam-chest.

The exhaust-valves H H are disk puppet-1 valves, fitting with moderate closeness in their f chambers I) D', the chambers being considerably larger thanthe port through the seat,

and are each provided with a distance-pin, K,

which reaches, through the diaphragm Xor X', to the face or some other part of a steamvalve, G, and the lengths of the distance-` pins K are such that when one steam-valve is home upon its seat the exhaust-valve of the.`

same end of the cylinderA will be held open, and the exhaust-valve of the other end' of A allowed to come to its seat, with, preferably, some clearance between the open steam-valve and the distance-pin of the closed exhaustvalve.V ,i j 'I i' 1 If the several valves and the piston B are in the positions shown in the drawings, and live steam he admitted through a `pipe attached at d to the steam-chamber F, pressure will come upon the back of the closed steamvalve G to the left, hold it shut, and also hold the leftward exhaust-valveH' open, so that the spaces and channels inclosed to the left of the piston B will be open 'to the exhaustpipe. The live steam will also pass through the opening ff, through the port of W and channel R, into the cylinder A to the right of B, while at the same time steam will pass through the channel M into the exhaust-valve chamber D, and press `upon the back of H, holding it shut, but be prevented by the check or cushion valve N from passing through the port vO into the cylinder A to the left of B;

The exhaust-channels P P' .lead into the cylinder A within the stroke of the piston B,

and into the exhaust-chambers between the disks of the valves H H' and their seats Y', and the live-steam channels R R' lead into A beyond the'stroke of B,fso that when 'the piston Bis at or near either end of its stroke,

the exhaust-way for that 4end of the-cylinder is closed by B, and the live-steam way R left Dpef). v i

It will be `observed that the steam-channels R B.' and exhaust-channels P P' are arranged side by side, as seen in' Fig. II, and that the continuation of the'sechannels into-the chain- `loersD D' is made in a one-sided' fashion, as

seen in Figs. III'and lV,`to correspond `with the side-by-side arrangement of qP R and P' R' Matters being disposed as before described, the live steam, pressing against the `right surface of `the piston B, will move it toward the left. When B moves'so far'as to uncover the opening of the channel P, live steam will fill the channel P, and also the space between the seat Y vand that part of the disk of H outside of the seat, partlybalancing the valve;

When the piston B reaches and covers the"` port of the channel, further escape of steamer gases will be prevented, and compression will take place in the inclosed space at the left of B, and when the piston B passes beyond and uncovers the port O', live steam will pass into the channel R' and inclosed spaces connected therewith, the cushion-valveN being opened by the .pressure coming under it, so that the Aforce urging B leftward will cease, and if the momentum of the reciprocating parts carry B farther in the same direction, the cushionvalve `N `having fallen to its seat, the live` Asteam pervading the space to the left of B will be compressed and form a rapidly-in- -creasingmeans of resistance 'tothe movement of B before the steam and exhaust valves are `shifted for the return stroke;

The pressure of n'steam will not come be- `tween `the valve H' fand its seat, being pre- `vented from "entering P' bythe piston- B covnected pair of steam-valves Gr andthe exhaustvalve H, thervalves acting as a, distancef piece between thedistancepinsK. After this vshifting of the valves,- the valves which o are shown open` in the drawings, Fig..l,.will be open, and viceversa, so that the lrightwardV stroke will be made and ended 'in' mannersimi-.

engine by blowing through during .the time".

,of the .throwing ofthevalve's, but s uch blowing through will occur-if' the preventer-plugs be not applied. Butit is not necessary-that the* plugshof the steam-valyesGbe vs o long as above indicated, if preventer-plugs t' -arejalso pro- In the" vided upon the exhaust-valves H H'. example before us the preventer-plugs z' of the valves H H' are so long that the exhaustvalve, which is in the act of closing, has its plug inserted in the port before the plug upon the steam-valve for the same end ofthe cylinder A is fully withdrawn from its port, and vice versa, so that there' is no blowing through at any time, and the losses in that way are confined to leakage, thesteam and exhaust valves performing thefunctions of puppetvalves at one time, and those of slide-valves at another. For the sake of brevity I designate such valves as H, H', and G, having preventer-plugs h and i attached, plug puppetvalves.77

For mechanical reasons it is well not to make the distance-pins K so long that the ex.

haast-valve H or H' will push the pair of steam-valves Gr fully home-to either seat W or W'. It will be sufficient if the adjustments are such that the pressure upon the back of an exhaust-valve shall shift the line of valves so far as merely to withdraw and insert the preventer-plugs from and into the corresponding ports, for the reason that when the exhaust-valveis partly open, and the steam-valve is so nearly closed that the plug prevents the flow of steam into one end of the cylinder, a diiferential pressure is generated, acting upon the back of the closing steam-valve, which operates to force the steam-valve home toits puppet-seat, carrying with it the opposite exhaust-valve to its full open position, as well as the opposite steam-valve, and leaving a considerable clearance between the plug-face ofthe open steam-valve and the distance-pin of the closed exhaust-valve. The shocks and the wear of the valves are considerably ameliorated by this clearance device, and by the fact that the moving parts in the valve-chambers are not artificially fastened to each other.

It is convenient for mechanical reasons to make the channels M M' by drilling through the metal of the exhaust-chamber, as indicated at S in Fig. 1H, and obscurely indicated by broken lines-in the exhaust-chamber D in Fig. I; but as, by either mode of construction, the same inclosed spaces are placed in communication, they vdifference is solelyr structural.

In the example ybefore yus the steam-channels RB.' nare curved outwardly, and a-recess is madein each, as indicated by g g, so that the cushion-valves N N' may'not be disturbed by thecurrents of steam- .passing along the channels R R'. v

The piston Bis composed chiefly of the `usual head yand follower-platesand the three rings nab. The-head and follower-plates are turned smaller than the bore off the cylinder A,and

Vtherings a a are rabbetedpso that when they are-in place` the rabbetedparts project over kthe -head and follower-plates, and the packjing-rings Iface against the bore ofthe cylinder over -the whole or greatergpart ofy the length of the piston B. This is forjthevpurpose of securing a sudden and full release of 4steam through either of the cushion-ports O O' when the piston passes over and beyond it.

When ordinary pistons are used in combi-` nation with such ports as O O', having packing-rings included between head and follower-plates, which fit loosely the bore of the cylinder, the release of steam through such ports as O O' begins as soon as the packingrings uncover them; but the steam is wiredrawn over the edge of the plate, until the plate itself passes beyond the port. By securing a more sudden and free release, as aforesaid, the piston-clearance may be diminished, and other advantages gained.

The channels c c are for the attachment of the ordinary cylinder-cocks, for the purpose of freeing the cylinder from water. l make the channels c c terminate in the bore of the cylinder within the stroke of the piston B, instead of the usual places in the counterbores beyond the piston-stroke, because if one of the channels c is closed by the piston B at the end of a stroke, the piston-cushion will be made whether the cylinder-cocks are open or not, Whereas if the channel be not covered, the cushion-steam will escape if the cylinder-cocks be open, and the cushion be spoiled, while the shifting of the valves will be delayed, so that the piston is liable to strike the cylinder-head, notwithstanding a large amount of normal piston-clearance.

I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, the following, to wit:

1. The combination of the bored valvechambers D, D', and F, valve-seats W W' Y Y', and diaphragms X X', in the same line, substantially in the manner and for the purposes described.

2. The combination of the valves G, H, and H', and their seats, the connected pair of valves G forming a distance-piece between the distance-pins K, substantially in the Inanner and for the purposes described.

3. The combination oftheindependentchamber F and seats Wk W' With the pair of plug puppet-valves Gr, connected by a bar or bars,

E, which are too short to allow both valvesto be seated at the same time, substantially'A in the manner and for the purposes described. `4. The combination of the chambers D D' and seats VY Y' VWith the pair of plug puppetvalves H H', separated by distance-pins K and distancepiece or pieces G E, ,so f ar as to I )reve'nt the seating oi' both yalves at the Vsame time, substantially in theA manner' and for the purposes described.

` 5. The combination, in the chamber D, of the seats W Y, diaphragm X, and valves G and H, which seats and diaphragm are cong nected ,by the distance-lugs L L, substantially in the manner and for the purposes described.

6.' The combination of the preventer plug` or plugs h and z', andseats W W'aud Y Y',

with the valves G and separate valves H H', which valves Aare capable of being'thrown or actuated by steam-pressure upon the backsA Vof vH or H', substantially ini thegmannerand for thepurposes described.4 y

7 The combination ofthe channels a c,open ing into-the cylinder AWithin the 'stroke of the piston B, withthe cushion-ports 0:0', cushion-valves N- N', a nd exhaust-channels P P', substantially in the manner and` for` the purposes described. 

